Pulp Fiction

In this blog post I will be talking about my research that I have conducted over these two weeks working on the 1960s with my group. I will talk about each section I researched and how well I did in researching them and getting the information needed to present. I have included my bibliography in all my blog posts.

The first topic I covered in my research was famous actors and actresses in the 1960s. I feel that this was important so that I could get a cultural perceptive on what was happening in the 1960s and what was happening with in that time period. The actors I covered were Paul Newman, Audrey Hepburn and Steve McQueen. I feel covered all of these quite well with giving facts on how well there films did at the box office and also a list of films that they are famous for. I also talked about how they had an impact on the industry and social at the time and still today in my presentation.

Second topic I covered in my research was that of famous bands and singers in the 1960s who were a big influence at the time. I covered the band rolling stones, Frank Sinatra and Elvis Presley. The reason for covering these artists is because I feel that they have great variety and are all very different but at the same time all still had a massive to the sound of music in the 60s. I feel that I researched these with giving details about their career whilst also talking about there personal lives as well. Overall I feel that I had enough on music to talk about in the presentation.

The third and final topic I covered in my research was that of politics at the time and what was happening globally and nationally with politics at the time. I feel that I covered this well giving a board view of what was happening at the time talking about the Cold War, protesting and law changes in the UK. I feel that due to me giving a board range of things I was able to cover lots of topics and have varied information to talk about.

I used the primary research of interviewing for the thoughts on Pulp Fiction, I feel I did this effectively giving a wide range of options on the film. The secondary research was looking online for information on the 1960s pop culture such as music and film. I presented my research in the form of bullet points in a powerpoint. I feel that this was a good and easy way to show our work to the rest of the class.

Overall I feel that I have done good research on focusing more on social and culture of the 1960s. I feel that this gave our group a better edge due to covering topics that not many people covered before or presented. I also feel that I presented it well to the rest of class by having bullet points so I can read off the powerpoint and expand upon that idea whilst talking to the class.

In This blog post I will be researching what the politics was like in the 1960s, primarily who was in power at the time and what policies they had and put in place. I will also be talking about how this effected the Krays and there influence in East London. I will also make sure to include the runs-ins with the Krays had with famous politicians. This is a list of Prime minsters at the time of the 1960s.

The 1960s mainly consisted of many protests against what was going on in the world, this was mainly due to the cold war going on at the time. For example the campaign for nuclear disarmament (CND) was big in the 1960s with protests in the UK and USA trying to get rid of nuclear weapons. There was also protests against the Vietnam war in the late 1960s, people saying it was a pointless war. Actors like Paul Newman were activities against the Vietnam for taking place. Women also campaigned for equal pay in the 1960s.

There was also big changes to law that were made in the 1960s. For example homosexuality being legalised for over 21s in 1967 in the UK. This was obviously good for the Krays due to one of them being gay. The voting age was also changed from 21 to 18 in 1969. The contraception pill was also created and made in 1961.

The fear of Cold War was also high due to the Cuban Missile crisis happening in 1962, coming close to world war 3. This also carried though the whole decade and escalated tensions with the Vietnam War starting in 1969. Harold Wilson the prime minster had a thought process of “White Heat of Technology.” Saying the UK should focus on new modern technology and industries.

In this blog post I will be looking at a more focused research on what cinemas were like in the 1960s. I will also be talking about how they have changed and how many they were at the time in London in the 1960s so I can relate to the Krays with my research. This will blog post will be mean I have a quite generalised research having a board perceptive on the 1960s while also now having more focused research on what the cinemas were like in the 1960s and specially in London. This will tie into my entertainment work I will be doing. I have made a question for my research so I can make sure I am focused enough to gather the correct information.

What were cinemas like in the 1960s and how are they different from today?

Cinemas haven’t changed much from the 1960s, from the fact that people would still go to see films at the weekend and it was a regular thing. They wouldn’t dress up compared to the early 1900s where cinemas were relative new. You were also allowed to smoke in the cinema however this was stopped in the 1960s and was banned. The projectors in the 1960s run on 35mm and 75mm film and would have to change over the film half way though with different roles of film. However in the 1960s cinemas were going down in sales due to televisions becoming more popular in homes. Meaning people didn’t see the point of going out as much to the cinema.

There were also no multiplexes yet so cinemas would only have one or two screens at there cinema, they were also normally run down and didn’t make as money as they do today. People working there would also dress as ushers and were waistcoats, even though people who went to the cinema wore normal clothes. They also stopped showing B films in front the first feature. They used to do this in the 1920s.

Conclusion:

The reason why I have done a more focused research on cinemas is due to the fact that if they were going to make a scene in a cinema, they need to make it accurate to the time period and have the design of the location correct and accurate.

In this blog post I will be talking about the music in the 60s what the cultural impact of it was. I will be also mentioning how the Krays had involvements with people in the music industry.

Rolling stones

Rolling stones was a rock and roll band that formed in 1962. They were a massive success in the 60s making such songs as Paint it black, Sympathy for the Devil and Satisfaction. This meant they had a massive impact globally and nationally. Coming from London as well this meant that they had influences in London culture and way of living which had on effect on the Krays due to owning many nightclubs and pubs. The rolling stones were also at the forefront of the media and music due to their way of living with drugs and drinking, this had an impact on people in the 60s but also reflected the 1960s as a whole and the attitude at the time. Ronnie Kray also mentioned the rolling stones in his book that he published in the 1990s.

“They called them the swinging sixties. The Beatles and The Rolling Stones were rulers of pop music, Carnaby Street ruled the fashion world… and me and my brother ruled London. We were fucking untouchable…”

– Ronnie Kray, in his autobiography, My Story

Frank Sinatra

Frank Sinatra was an American singer and actor. Gaining fame in the 1950s for songs such as Come fly with me and You make me feel so young. He continued to be find great success in the 1960s with songs such as That’s life, Fly me to the moon and My way. Frank Sinatra was a massive impact to music in the 60s, due to being a cultural icon and to having massive hits globally with his records. He also found success starring in films in the early 60s such as The Manchurian Candidate and the original Ocean’s 11. This made him very influential in the 1960s. However he also had several ties with the Mafia and had experienced run-ins with the Krays when he visited London due to needing protection. This didn’t have an effect on his career though, maybe even making better due to rumours saying that he got some his acting roles through the Mafia.

Elvis Presley

Elvis Presley was an American singer, he gained stardom almost instantly with his album jailhouse rock. He later continued his success into the 6os with songs like Can’t Help Falling In Love and Suspicious Minds. Becoming an massive influence globally with his hit records and still having an impact today, shows how important he was in the 1960s. Making him a pop culture icon to the masses, still having a massive effect to this day.

According to Rolling Stone Magazine, “it was Elvis who made rock ‘n’ roll the international language of pop.”

This shows how much of an impact elvis had on the world with his style, this is why I feel it is important to mention him in my research about music that was popular in the 60s.

Overall the reason why I chose these three was because of how they were big in the 60s and how they had a impact on music in that time period. This is important because in order to make a film you need to know what was going on at the time culturally so you can make a authentic film related to that time period.

In this blog post I will be explaining what I am doing for the research for the last part of the Tarantino task. In this task I will be researching the topic of 1960s London in order to for Tarantino to use this information to enable him to produce a film. I have been placed in a group of four people so we can each cover different topics so we can get much information as possible. I am in a group with Max, Betsy and Nathan. We have each taken three topics to do detailed research so we can place them all in a powerpoint to present to the rest of the class. The topics I have been chosen to research is Entertainment, i.e actors big at the time but also what clubs and bars the Krays owned. The second topic I will be doing is music, this means researching singers and bands that were big at the time that had influence on the culture at the time. The third and final thing I will be researching is that of the politics. What the political situation was at the time and also how this affected the Krays. Max will be researching Police, Language and Fashion. Betsy will be researching Female gangsters, Prison and family and up bringing. Nathan will be researching Crime, locations that could be used for the film and the portrayal in the media.

In the 50s and 60s the Krays owned much the entertainment in East London such nightclubs, pubs and bars. In this post I will be researching what they owned how it helped to earn their reputation and power in the London and the east end.

After ending their boxing careers due to the amount of discharges they got and their criminal records, they took up the criminal life full time. After going full time they decided to buy a run down snooker club in Bethnal Green where they started several protection rackets. By the end of the 1950s they acquired clubs and other entertainment properties by working for Jay Murray from Liverpool. This work involved hijacking, armed robbery and arson.

In 1960 Peter Rachman, head of a violent landlord operation, gave Reggie a nightclub called Esmeralda’s barn. This was to be the first of many to owned by the Krays in the East End. It is located on the Knightsbridge at the end of Wilton Place next to a bistro called Joan’s Kitchen. This increased the Krays’ influence in the West End by making them celebrities as well as criminals.

Though the 1960s they were seen as charming celebrity nightclub owners and were part of the London scene. Their fame was largely down to the non-criminal activities they would take part in. For example being photographed by David Bailey on more than one occasion, and socialising with lords, MPs, socialites, and show business characters, including actors George Raft, Judy Garland, Diana Dors, Barbara Windsor, and singer Frank Sinatra.

“They were the best years of our lives. They called them the swinging sixties. The Beatles and The Rolling Stones were rulers of pop music, Carnaby Street ruled the fashion world… and me and my brother ruled London. We were fucking untouchable…”

In this word document I will be talking about the Actors, Actresses and films that had a massive cultural impact on life and society in the 60s. I feel that this would in making a film related to this time period due to the fact having to get the cultural and what was going on at the time feel to it.

Paul Newman:

The first actor I will be talking about is Paul Newman and the impact he had on the 60s. Paul Newman was a cultural icon in the 60s due to such films as The hustler, Cool Hand Luke and Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. These films garnered a lot of praise making him a house hold name due to his performances and charisma on screen. This made every man want to be Paul Newman. This impacted the style of the 60s and the entertainment industry as a whole. His films were massive box offices successes with such films as Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid making $102,308,889 as a lifetime gross.

“Could another actor than Paul Newman have played the role and gotten away with it? Of the stars at the time, I would not be able to supply one. Warren Beatty? Steve McQueen? Lee Marvin? They would have the presence and stamina, but would have lacked the smile.” (Roger Ebert, 1967)

This quote is a reviewer from the time displaying how his charisma had an impact on the culture of the 1960s.

Steve McQueen:

The next actor I will be talking about is Steve McQueen. Who was in films in the 60s such as Bullitt, The Great Escape, The Magnificent Seven and The Thomas Crown Affair. These films made him an icon and massive star in the 60s. Even getting an Oscar nomination in the film Sand Pebbles. Steve McQueen was like Paul Newman becoming an icon due to his presence on screen and performances in these films. He changed the style of the many people due to everyone wanting to be him due to him having great charisma on and off screen. His films were also massive box offices successes with the film Bullitt earning $42,300,873.

“But McQueen is great in “Bullitt,” and the movie is great, because director Peter Yates understands the McQueen image and works within it.” (Roger Ebert, 1968)

This quote was made at the time by a reviewer, talking about Steve McQueen’s presence on screen.

Audrey Hepburn:

The last person I would be talking about is the actress Audrey Hepburn, who was massive star in the 50s and 60s in such films as Breakfast at Tiffany’s, My Fair Lady, Charade and How to Steal a Million. These films had much success at the box office and critically. Making Audrey Hepburn a pop culture icon for the 60s. “Hepburn was not even nominated for best actress.” (Roger Ebert, 2006) This quote shows that she had great performances in films making her a house hold name in the movie industry and a massive star. My Fair Lady also was a massive box office success making 72 million USD when it opened.

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